5 Tips for amazing customer service

Any business that is truly worth its salt will constantly strive to improve its customer service; your customers are your biggest admirers, worst critics, and best opportunities for change, after all. Customer expectation has never been higher before, and the growth of social media and forums means that it’s more important than ever to please those choosing your services; their word could build, or destroy, your reputation in the time it takes to write an online review. So, what should you be doing to improve your customer service?

5 Tips for amazing customer service

5 Tips for amazing customer service Click To Tweet

1. Listen

Regardless of whether you’ve called them or they’ve called you always be prepared to listen to everything the customer is trying to tell you. Communication is vital, whatever stage of the process you’re currently undertaking. What is your customer looking for? What needs must be fulfilled? Are they unhappy with any aspect of the transaction? Listening is about so much more than taking in the words a customer is saying; it’s about judging their mood, reacting to their nuances, and never pushing your own agenda. Yes, you have a product to tell them about, but first try and understand what needs your customer may have – it’ll make you a far better salesperson in the long run.

2. Admit your mistakes

Your customers won’t expect you to be infallible, but nor will they stand for excuses; if you’ve made a mistake, or if an issue within your company has caused a customer an inconvenience, admit it, apologise, and move on. Mistakes are an unavoidable aspect of business, but the ways in which you deal with them can set you apart from your competitors, or send you spinning quickly out of control.

3. Settle upon your priorities

Is your business more concerned with quality or quantity? Would you rather usher order upon order into your in tray, or focus on a very few loyal customers? Now is the time to get your priorities straight, as tackling too many orders in one go could affect the customer experience of anyone choosing to deal with you. Providing amazing customer experience won’t necessarily see you handling a record number of orders, but it will ensure that those clients choose to come back time and time again; by focusing on your priorities you can make the customer your number one.

4. Aim to be an expert

Sometimes all a customer wants is answers; whether they’re looking to locate a lost order, find out more about a product or service, or are wondering how you can best help them, your customers will expect you to have all of the answers ready and waiting. While that won’t always be the case now is the time to brush up. Ensure you know everything there is to know about your company and its products, and be prepared to redirect a customer to a colleague if they’re better equipped to know answer that burning query. Your customers want to know that they’re dealing with professionals in the field, so reassure them that you are the ones for the job.

5. Be memorable for the right reasons

It doesn’t take much for a business to be blacklisted in a customer’s mind, but it also doesn’t take a miracle to be memorable for all of the right reasons; smile, even if you’re chatting on the phone, aim to engage with every customer on a personal level, and get to know your regulars as if they were friends. A quirky, personable service is so much better than a solemn one, and you may find that customers are returning time after time purely because of their dealings with your operators.

Of course, there are way more than five ways to provide excellent customer service. The truth is that you should never stop striving to improve the ways in which you communicate with, and provide for, your customers; they are at the heart of your very being after all, and your relationships should be nurtured carefully. Amazing customer service should come as second nature, regardless of whether it’s your first interaction, or fiftieth; whether there’s an issue with their order, they have a question, or would like to provide positive feedback, a customer is there to be listened to.

How would you improve your customer service?

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